The 51st Tennessee lost most of its men at Fort Donelson, but the survivors fought two months later at Shiloh. Shortly after the battle, they were incorporated into the 52nd Tennessee.
The Confederate Memorial is one of the finest memorials located at Shiloh.
The Hornet's Nest, where almost half of the battle's 23,800 casualties were suffered in an area that only covers 30 acres.
In an effort to break the Union forces at the Hornet's Nest, Brigadier General Ruggle lined up 62 cannon and opened fire for 2 hours, shattering the Union line and forcing their surrender.
Due to the heat in the days following the battle, General Grant was forced to bury the dead from both sides in mass graves. Following the war, the Union dead were moved to the National Cemetery that was established at Shiloh, but the governor of Tennessee refused to allow the disinternment of the Confederate dead, so they still remain. Only five of the seven Confederate burial trenches have ever been located.
General Albert Sidney Johnston was the highest ranking field officer in the Confederate Army at the time of his death. Nerve damage from an old wound prevented Johnston from feeling the wound to the back of his knee that nicked an artery and caused him to bleed to death from what should have been a survivable wound.
